Property industry urges support for NEG

The Property Council of Australia has urged state and territory governments to endorse the National Energy Guarantee (NEG) and support its implementation at this week’s COAG Energy Ministers meeting.

"On behalf of Australia’s biggest industry which employs 1.4 million Australians and contributes 13 per cent of GDP, we strongly support the objectives of the NEG to depoliticise energy policy and to integrate energy and climate policy," said Ken Morrison, Chief Executive of the Property Council.

"The NEG represents a viable way forward for Australia in achieving emission reductions while ensuring affordable and reliable energy supply for Australian households and businesses.

"The reality is that the NEG is the only realistic framework for addressing these issues which is on the table. The alternative to moving forward with the NEG framework is to have no framework and no certainty, and that approach has failed the country for too long.

"‘We join with other business and industry bodies in urging all Australian governments to support a policy approach that delivers certainty and stability in our energy sector," Mr Morrison said.

Australia’s property industry is leading the world in the design and development of sustainable buildings that will support our emissions reduction targets and help Australia achieve its Paris Agreement commitments.

"It’s time to quit the partisan and ideological point-scoring and work together in the national interest to support a policy framework which can deliver certainty on the supply and cost of energy for Australian households, business and industry," Mr Morrison said.